Admittedly, I've become used to seeing a beautiful ladies face on an ancient Greek, and going, "No helmet, no Athena.", "No Crown, no Hera." "No bow, no Artemis." Fooled by Apollo again! But I was pretty stoked to get such a nicely struck, near as struck Greek, for next to the price of religion (here in Utah they're giving it away for free!) LYDIA, Sardes. Circa 133 BC-AD 14. Æ. Laureate head of Apollo right. / Club within laurel wreath; monogram above. SNG Copenhagen 470-482. BMC 238 17 mm, 4,62 g Was certainly excited to receive it, as in hand the little thing sings Apollo is so feminine to modern standards it's high-larious You can see where they didn't smooth the flan out enough before striking, the extra metal they left and that saweet monogram at the top of the reverse#class! What's not to love? And then I remembered, don't I have a reverse that looks A LOT like this? I went through my unidentifiables. And guess the sillyness I came across... Can you imagine the poor celator whom created that beautiful image of Apollo walking into the mint work shop and coming across this? "Whata the heck happeneda to my art?" The guy holding the anvil/hammer, "Kevinus burped while I wasa mid swing!" The celator, "You cana barely even seea da backa his head!" Kevin scratches his belly and looks at the ceiling tiles beginning to whistle whilst he walks away. In his best voice as Dave from Alvin and the Chipmunks the celator bellows out, "Keeeeeeviiiiiiiin!" But seriously, if the guy had missed the flan on the obverese any closer the metal would've slid right out! Not that the reverse is all on the either. Almost missed the monogram. Anyway, I'd love to see all your close calls (or rather large misses), any type of Kevin especial really, Apollo in his youthful splendor and or anything that strikes (pun Nintendoed) you as belonging.
@Ryro, strange, I've got the EXACT same situation with this coin. My first one that I picked up in an uncleaned lot years ago has the obverse off-set by 80%+. It's also on a super-thick flan. About a month ago I picked up a better, more centered, example in an auction for like 10 bucks. Someone not only had a bad day, they were having a bad career. I think poor Kevin was "counseled out". I'll snap photos and add them tomorrow... way too late to bust out the camera.
As promised. APOLLOgies (booo) for the terrible photos, but you get the idea. Lydia, Sardes AE, First Century BC Obv: Apollo (?) Strike off-center by 80%+ Rev: ΣAΡΔI-ANΩN, club, within oak wreath 5.2g, 14mm BMC 21 (?) Side view Left = Fully struck Right = Partially struck Lydia, Sardes AE, First Century BC Obv: Apollo facing right within Rev: ΣAΡΔI-ANΩN, club, within oak wreath 5.2g, 14mm BMC 21 (?) Could the thicker flan have caused the mis-strike or did the flan not flatten out because of the mis-strike? Did flans start out thick and then mush down once struck? I assume they start out a little thicker so the extra metal can flow into the devices but this mis-struck one was a little too thick. Maybe it wasn't Kevins fault after all and Ted in Quality Control for the Flan Fabrication Department was hitting the vino a little early.
That is too funny!!! Beautiful second exempt btw. I guess we're twins... Or at least or coins are: What shenanigans were going on at that mint in Sardes??? PS, NAILED IT with that APOLLOgies pun
Here are two Kevinus hiccup coins from the Roman Third Century. The first one looks like a moon of Mars, but it is an antoninianus of Gallienus. 18 x 21 mm, 3.14 gr. The second one is a Probus ant (RIC 175), as spectacularly hiccuped but clearer. 25 x 21 mm, 3.12 gr.
An interesting flan on your first coin, and quite a misstrike on the second! Here is a coin with obverse of the twin brother of Artemis, son of Zeus and Leto, the most beautiful god, and the ideal of κούρος: Apollo. Imperatorial Rome, P. Clodius M.f. Turrinus, 42 BC, AR Denarius, Rome mint Obv: Laureate head of Apollo right; lyre to left Rev: Diana Lucifera standing right, bow and quiver over her shoulder, holding torch with each hand Ref: Crawford 494/23; Claudia 15 and a misstrike - a good 30% off-flan on both sides C. Censorinus, 88 BC, AR Denarius, Rome mint Obv: Jugate, diademed heads right of Numa Pompilius (legendary 2nd king, successor to Romulus) and Ancus Marcius (legendary 4th king of Rome) Rev: Two horses galloping right; a desultor (an individual skilled at leaping from one horse to another) riding the nearest one, wearing conical hat and holding whip; control mark XX below Ref: Crawford 346/1b (no control mark on obverse, control numeral on reverse) Note: the moneyer claiming descent from 2 kings of Rome, and alluding the the Ludi Apollinares that his ancestor helped to found (for more see Livy, and Macrobius).
Always love your write-ups, @Ryro . I think that this reverse was struck by one of Kevin’s associates in Illyria.